What Love Can Do
by simply-carol
Summary: syaoran is a womanizer. To gain his independence from his family, he must first be married and produced an heir to the Li family. But there's a slight change in the bride... S+S
1. Prologue

**Love Gone Wrong **

**Summary**: Syaoran is a womanizer. To gain his independence from his family, he must first be married and produced an heir to the Li family. But there's a slight change in the bride. What will Sakura think of the bargain her sister made with Syaoran?

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything. I'm just putting the characters of the anime Cardcaptor Sakura in the story for your entertainment. (Am I a little harsh? Gomen nasai)

Prologue 

Hong Kong

The hectic activities of the day left Li Syaoran exhausted and flushed. His companion too is known to be good at cards. Indeed, Mr. Allan Avalon had been a man playing with the luck of an angel on one side and the devil on the other.

They sat facing each other now, slouched in their seats, legs outstretched, a glass of brandy each. If anyone is watching the darkened corners of the men's club, they would cared to give them anything than an peculiar glance and have seen nothing more than a pair of incurable shameless men savoring their victories despite the prospect of tomorrow's hangover.

Only Syaoran would likely notice that his companion was tense and had been less than focused on the game this evening. Five hundred bucks was not shameful for an evening's work. But it would have been doubled. It was time to find out what was causing the distraction. He had a feeling he would not like the answer, so he sighed before he demanded, "Spill it."

Uneasily, his companion shifted, running his fingers through his hair with nervousness that is evident. But there was no hint of deceit, no claim of innocence. That was one of the reasons of their friendship. "I hate to be the one to break the news to you, but your bride-to-be is about run away."

The news gripped him around the middle, like a boxer's hold. For a moment he struggled for breath. "And where would the fair Cattelaya be going, if not to the altar with me?"

"To America."

Syaoran wanted to curse. To shout. To argue. But he did not doubt the truth of the information. He slumped further into his seat. "I knew I had a poor reputation, but I didn't expect it would fly her to another continent." The amber of his brandy glimmered in the dim light of the club as it swirled to and fro with his movements.

His companion leaned back into the lavish leather of the chair, relaxing now that the fateful news had been delivered. "You can curse me for bearing bad news, if you wish."

Syaoran stared grumpily into the shadows. "Will cursing you deliver my bride to the altar?" The answer to the question was certain to happen, but all the same he had to ask.

The reply was as clear as he had expected. "No. But I thought maybe some impolite words might, however, ease some of the temper I see growing in you."

"What temper? I am calm as a priest at prayer." He swallowed down the contents of his glass and held it out, wherein a servant stepped in from the shadows and refilled it.

"The temper that is turning your face red."

_'Sometimes a friend could know one too well_,' Syaoran thought. Which was why he did not have many friends.

"Do you resent me for my few moments of annoyance? I was planning to be married in two weeks' time, and now I am told that my bride will not join me at the altar. No one will spare a little bit of sympathy for Li's rake heir, will they?"

"Sympathy? Why? You are not marrying for love. You have made no secret of it. You have to face this conflict only to secure an heir and gain control of your funds from your grandfather's hands."

"Only?" Remembering his traitorous earlobes, Syaoran spent a moment to calm his anger. "The reasons seemed essential to me when my grandfather promised me control of my inheritance simply for marrying and producing an heir. Why else bother to find a woman who'd agree to my terms?"

"Perhaps he will be willing to give control of some of your funds once he had learned that your bride has walked out in you, in pity for your poor and wounded pride?"

Syaoran laughed aloud, a laughter that carried the sound of his bitterness through the quiet room. "No. He will not. Not until I am married and produce an heir." '_Even then the old man might have some trick up his sleeve to try to hold on to his control_,' but Syaoran had shared that possibility with no one, not even his best friend.

"So, you are still determined upon that option? Despite" – with a dramatic pause and an apologetic sigh cut by a wicked half smile – "despite knowing that proper ladies will be cautious of the jilted Syaoran ne?"

"Cautious? They will be eager, the foolish children. What is it about a man with no moral restraints to speak of, that green girls see him with stars in their eyes?"

" I have never imagined the secret of such idiocy, myself, despite having two sisters. Though I don't suppose it hurts that you are devilishly handsome as well as a Casanova. I believe the combination of amber eyes and hazel nut hair is almost guaranteed to make women swoon."

They both sighed and spent a moment in silent consideration of such behavior, before Syaoran's companion complained about, "How unfortunate that you do not wish a green girl."

"Beyond unfortunate. Where shall I find a woman who is as agreeable as Miss Cattleya Kinomoto to living her own life and leaving me to my own disreputable one is a puzzle I do not enjoy having to solve – again," he grumbled, almost completely resigned to the fact now. Amazing how the effect of a few glasses of brandy could make him. Tomorrow he'd experience a terrible headache.

"Perhaps this time you will just have to settle for the next best alternative."

"And what would that be?"

"Compromise one of the young women who has begun to think she will never find a husband. Perhaps her gratitude will keep her from complaining when you do not reform your ways."

"Such an act would be in keeping with my reputation, I suppose. Do I sound meticulous if I say the idea disgusts me?"

"Why? You need a wife. Isn't seduction a time-honored way for a rake to acquire one?" There was a faint bitterness beneath the words that made Syaoran's ears burn up.

"The work involved seems excessive: wooing and seducing a young virgin only to have to deal with her tears before and after the wedding. I much prefer the the straightforward bargain that Cattleya and I made."

His companion switched position in the leather chair, as if trying to find a comfortable position, before leaning forward to offer in a casual tone, "Perhaps I have the solution for you?"

Syaoran has prepared himself for a joke, but then noticed that his companion once again is apparent with the tension he had noticed earlier this evening. "Let me guess. Akiko Yuri – squinty eyes, lots of pimples, and all."

Instead of an answering grin at his humor, he received a sharp chide. "Miss Yuri is too good for the likes of you." Belatedly, Syaoran remembered that his friend disliked anyone making fun of the less-than-beautiful young women who were forced to compete with that nature had blessed.

"I mean Sakura Kinomoto."

Syaoran would have laughed, but for the pair of serious emerald eyes focused on him. There was not a hint of a smile, and he knew the subtle signs of humor in his best friend too well to doubt that he had just been made a legitimate offer. "Impossible."

The only answer to his rejection of the idea was silence. Syaoran thought of Sakura, Cattleya's twin. Though they were identical in appearance, they were greatly different in behavior. He imagined putting the same bargain before the prim Sakura as he had before Cattleya. The very idea was absurd.

He counted off the reasons on his fingers, allowing them to be absorbed into the silent and dimly lit of the club's dark-paneled walls. "She is Cattleya's sister, she is impossibly proper, and has made no secret of utter disregard for my rather questionable morals."

"Not as impossible as you think." Reluctantly, his friend added, "She has a secret that makes her vulnerable to an offer from you right now."

The only type of secret he could imagine was a scandalous recklessness. He could not imagine such a thing in context with Sakura, whenever try as he might. "What has she done? Allowed a man to kiss her? What young miss worth her salt has not?"

"She took a lover, expecting a formal engagement for her hand, but he proved to be a dishonorable man."

Syaoran had thought himself incapable of being shocked anymore. The idea of Sakura Kinomoto with a lover was so unbelievable he'd have believed no one else who told him such a thing. "I hope, for her sake, he did not prove as clumsy with her pleasure as he did with her heart."

His comment was rewarded with a flush of color upon his friend's cheeks, to his great satisfaction. "I believed this might put your spirit in a new light. I did not intend to spread rumor that might hurt the young lady."

"If no one knows, her reputation is secure. If she marries me, her reputation has a permanent flaw. Cat accepted that."

"Relished it would be more accurate."

"Her sister – "

"She is not so conservative as she appears."

"I will take your word for it. Certainly she has scolded me for both my drinking and gambling habit."

"You are to marry her twin; it is understandable that she is concerned."

"And now you are suggesting that I exchange one sister for the other at the altar?"

"Exactly."

Syaoran considered the idea. "Am I expected to blackmail her into marriage?" He found the idea distasteful.

"Of course not. You will make the same bargain with her as you made with her sister – in addition, you will promise never to bring up her indiscretion in the future."

"I can see the advantage for me," Syaoran said slowly. "But for Sakura? What does she gain from marrying an unrepentant rake? Wouldn't she be better off chasing down her lover and forcing him to marry her? Surely Touya has the necessary power."

"Sakura is not a fool. She has the sense to see marriage to a willing husband as preferable to being chained up to an unwilling coward. Which benefits you, in that she understands too well how futile it is to attempt to change a man's true nature."

Syaoran's curiosity rose at the contempt that shaded his companion's words. "Just who was able to break Sakura's remarkable decorum?"

"That information is not for me to reveal." A curt, sharp warning that Syaoran was close to trespass.

His curiosity grew stronger. He continued to persuade, "If I am to approach the girl to offer a bargain – " but his companion suddenly cut him off.

"Let me manage that. Simply decide whether this exchange of brides will suit you."

Syaoran did not need to ponder overmuch. The girl was Cat's sister after all; there must be more similarities than were apparent at first. He could, at the very least, be honest with her. "You swear she will leave me to my own custom?"

"Exclusively."

A warning voice in the back of his mind compelled him to be cautious. After all, a wife was forever. "I'll need to speak to her. Can that be managed? Someplace private. I want to know the truth from her, not you – especially if she's the one to be my bride."

"I'll arrange it. And then you'll see I'm right." His companion swallowed down the remaining brandy before standing to go. The emerald eyes that met his shone with frankness, and the smile was one of pure relief. "I know my sister."

With a quick glance around, Cat planted a hard kiss on his lips.

Syaoran pushed him – or rather _her _– away with a harsh exclamation. "You forget yourself Mr. Avalon. And that after jilting me."

She only laughed which made her disguise in her head quiver. "What? Are you bothered about your reputation?" And then her expression grew more solemn. "I'm sorry, Syaoran. I don't want to be married, not even to you, who'd let me do as I liked."

He didn't replied. She, of all people, knew the hopes he had on marriage. An heir. A life of his own that did not depend on his grandfather's approval.

He was glad to see her feel awkward a bit with guilt. Still, he was not surprised to see that she would not change her mind.

She fiddled with her whiskers, her gaze full of certainty. "I know my sister. You and Sakura will be perfect for each other. I'm sure of it."

**Next Chapter:**

Confrontation – Sakura and Cattleya have a heart to heart talk. Cattleya is discussing to her sister the advantages of being Syaoran's wife on her current predicament.

**AN:** Did you like it? I hope so. In all the fanfics that I have read, Syaoran is usually a womanizer. I don't know why, but I think it adds more to his appeal. Don't you think? Please review and tell me what you think. If you have any comments and suggestions, please feel free to inform me. Thank you and have a nice day.

**********truehearts signing off**********


	2. To Marry or Not To Marry

What Love Can Do 

**AN: **Hello. I just got back yesterday from the province. Here's the second chapter of What Love Can Do. Hope you'll like it. And thanks for those who reviewed the last chapter namely:

**your bigest fan** – Thanks. Hope you'll also find this great.

**ac4cherryz **– Thanks. Please review this chapter also.

**Green-Crystal **– Sorry for the late update.

**Azi** – Thanks for finding this story interesting. Hope you'll review this chapter also.

**Megami No Hikari – **Thanks for your review.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything. All the characters belong to someone else except for Sakura's twin sister Cattleya. ; This story is a mere adaptation of the Once Upon A Wedding. So please don't file a suit.

On with the story:

**Chapter 1: **To Marry Or Not To Marry

"It's the perfect solution, Sak."

Cat's ethereal voice drifted down from the Sakura tree. "I don't want to marry him."

Sakura ignored her concentrating on the cross-stitch she was sewing of an angel with a harp on her hands. She couldn't see her right now, but she knew her sister had her skirts hiked up in an unladylike manner. No doubt she was sitting in an Indian sit style, munching an apple as she spoke of senseless things. _Why did Cat always wish for adventure? Why could she not simply settle down with Syaoran and children of her own?_ Sakura brushed away the petals that had landed on the piece of cloth she was working on and sighed.

Cattleya moved sharply when Sakura did not respond, making more cherry blossoms fall over the ground. "I won't marry him," she took a deep breath and began "even if you don't agree to replace me. I will be the poor man's runaway bride and I'll do it in the most humiliating way I knew" she threatened.

Sakura could imagine the scene. Knowing her brother, he would be furious of the scandal. His wife, their sister-in-law Mei Lin, would do her best to calm the ruined dignity of the family and the bewildered guests. "Maybe, it's for the best. He is one of the worst of its kind. No doubt it will only add to his reputation, to be jilted." Sakura tried to picture Syaoran Li sad or angry, she just can't conjure the image without laughing. Syaoran would surely have some wicked trick off his sleeve to offer the embarrassed guests – of course at both his and Cat's expense.

"He is a good man, Sak, no matter what the people think about him. Maybe his a little bit in the wild side."

"Wild as a WOLF. Even you had not planned to suppress him, Cat. You'll just leave him to his own evil doings while you'd pursued your own." Sakura let herself imagine Syaoran across the breakfast table. Weird. The man, certainly, did not wake up until… well… afternoon?

"I've known him to be harmless to everyone."

"He fought many duels." Over cards and over women. Married women to be exact.

"It's all gossips."

Sakura resisted the urge to scream. "You followed at second, Cat. Do you think I'm that naïve?"

"Sometimes a man with his reputation ends up in situation he would rather not be involved. He just needs to. A man got to do, what a man's got to do as one of the saying goes."

"How valiant."

Cat's patients in convincing her sister snapped. "He's willing to marry you, knowing why you'd even consider trading places with me."

Sakura went still, and cold fear seized her body. "You wouldn't tell him? Would you?"

"Of course I did. How else could I convince him that you would accept his offer?" Cat was silent for a moment when Sakura did not answer, and then she spoke slowly, "He didn't seem to be bothered a bit."

"Oh sure! How reassuring." Sakura replied sarcastically. Perhaps it was a blessing in disguise that her sister was going to jilt the man. Facing him again, knowing that he was informed of her darkest secret…

"Considering your circumstances, I can't believe you would throw stones."

Sakura was hurt by her sister's words. "You speak as though my fate will be disastrous if I do not marry your EX-fiancée. Are you the same person who encouraged me of not being too decent?"

Cat threw a withered apple down, which bounced of Sakura's lap and rolled down to rest in the ground. "Are you saying that you do not fear of any scandal or humiliation? And I told you, if you just give him the opportunity to talk to you – not lift your skirts."

Sakura knew she had made a fool of herself; she didn't need Cat to remind her. Her only hope had been to keep the knowledge from anyone else. And now Cat had told her ex-fiancée, who might gamble the secret away for his own drunken amusement. "You should not have told him. Maybe no one would ever know. And you know for a fact that I'm not yet sure if I will have a child."

Cat came down from the tree in a shower of leaves. Her hand came to rest comforting, strong and steady on Sakura's shoulder. "There's always abor – "

Sakura shook her head furiously. "No. If I was that stupid to believe in Robert and end up pregnant, then I deserve the embarrassment." She closed her eyes. "I can't believe I thought he would marry me."

"He told you so, with his promise. How could you guess he would lie?"

Sakura looked into her sister's emerald eyes, the mirror of her own. How could they be so different inside? "You would have known."

"I don't fantasize the same dreams you do, Sakura. I don't want a husband, babies, a house to call your own, a home to manage, a family." She pressed, "All these things you can have if you marry Syaoran."

"But not love. Not a husband who will treasure me, or who will make me proud." She imagined an evening in a social gathering with Syaoran: _Would he dance with me before he head to the cards – or would he favor some other woman? His mistress, perhaps. One of his many mistresses. _

"He will give you your freedom, Sakura. Once you've given up on your fairy-tale princes, you will see that you made the best bargain possible. Just think – you will be able to sew and you can do anything you want. You can even spend your years abroad, any country, you just have to choose. And Syaoran will not play the part of disapproving husband. He'll urge you to enhance your skills."

"Don't try to persuade me with your own fairy tale. If I agree to this marriage, I will be much too busy producing and raising his heir to have much freedom to travel around."

Cattleya wrinkled her nose. "That is one of the reason that I much prefer to went to America than to marry Syaoran, with or without freedom. But Sakura, you're not me. You want children."

"I do want to have children. But I don't want to live a life full of deceit and lies. And if the worst is to come, I'll be expecting an early child which I would have to explain who will be no doubt be Robert's. And I'll have to worry if Syaoran would keep his mouth shut if the time comes." _Or worse, that he would be so cold as to not acknowledge her child as his. _

"I hope all these thoughts of yours do not happen. And if the worst is to happen, I'm sure Syaoran would not mind." Cattleya tightened her hold on Sakura's shoulder as she added determined, "I will make him swear it. I will not make you or your child hurt. And I promise to you both that he will answer to me if he did not keep his word."

It was possibly not until then that Sakura realized that Cat was determined on this marriage. Not only that she could go to America but also for her safety from her own foolish actions.

There was truly one question left to ponder about: _Would marrying Syaoran be for the best, save her – or condemned her to a life of misery?_

Sakura shook off her sister's soothing hand.

"Oh, why did I have to be such a fool, Cat? Why couldn't I have been like you? What had come to my mind when I thought being alone with him was so romantic? To let him…"

"I don't know, Sak. It was a mistake. A horrible mistake. But you can mend it. Marry Syaoran. He'll be happy to accept your child, if you'll have one. And if your not, you'll only have to bear his company till you two make a child together. Rest assured that he'd let you live your life as you wish."

Sakura wanted to cry. The offer was too tempting, and all because of one mistake. "One foolish mistake – "

"Two actually." Cat snapped her mouth shut, as if she realized that she should not have spoken.

Sometimes Sakura wished that she didn't always confide with her sister. "He told me that he would speak to... her that very day. I did not know what to do – "

"A simple and firm NO should have do, I'm sure of it."

"I'm afraid you inherited all the spirit for the both of us, right from the womb."

"You have enough spirit, Sak; you're just afraid to use it. You'd rather prefer not to face the consequences such as marrying Syaoran. I don't mind them, as long as the purpose is sensible enough."

"Why can't you just stay here? You know I'll miss you." Cat had always been there for her either for a talk, for help, or for support.

"I've made my mind, Sak. There's no use in arguing about it. After you've had the baby, you can always visit." Cat smiled. "I wouldn't be surprised to hear that you'd quite become submissive to your husband by then."

"Your ex-fiancée?" Sakura frowned, forcing away a picture of Syaoran's lips descending to meet her own. She curled her knees up. "Would he truly not mind if I were to come to him already carrying another man's child?"

"Believe me, he would count it as a blessing."

"What kind of man does not care? I must first speak to him. This matter can't be assured by only your word. I must look into his eyes and see that you are right about this"

Her sister smiled widely. "good, I told him that you would meet him tonight, instead of me."

_Tonight. _

**AN:** What do you think? Please keep on reviewing. 


	3. Talking to the Devil part 1

What Love Can Do

AN: Thanks for all those who reviewed last chapter. Sorry for the late update.

Same disclaimer applies.

Chapter 2: Talking to the Devil part 1

"No… I can't go. What about the gossips if I were seen…"

Cat grunted in unladylike manner. "Of course you'll wear my disguise. As a man you can go anywhere you like without anyone's notice."

Sakura pondered on what her sister said. She was sure that Syaoran would make a laugh about the matter between them. But he needed a wife, and she is in desperate need of a husband.

"Hold on still, I'm putting your wig."

The ingenuity of Cat's plan, a black leather jacket zipped up to the neckline, a white t-shirt underneath with pillow as padding, blue denims adorned her lower half and a black shades to match the outfit. It made Sakura's body feel heavy and clumsy. "Maybe… this isn't a good idea. I could speak to him tomorrow when he comes here."

Cat continued adjusting Sakura's disguise without a stop. "With Mei Lin nearby? You don't want your secret to be discovered, ne?"

"No." She didn't want another person to know what she had done. Being aware that Syaoran already knew is horrible enough for her.

"So… you must privately talk to know if he's sincere on his offer." Cat argued.

Since Touya was a strict brother, he doesn't allow his sisters to wonder around at late hours and gave them early curfews as if their children. To go out and meet Syaoran, Cattleya usually disguises herself as a man to hide the fact that she goes out by night and hang with him as best buddies.

Cattleya adjusted Sakura's disguise for her to look manly enough.

//////////////////// At Syaoran's House ////////////////////

"Welcome Mr. Avalon. Master Syaoran is waiting for you in the parlor." Greeted the butler ushering her to the room.

When she entered the room, it was dim lighted and she expected Syaoran to acknowledge her presence but to her dismay he didn't.

Unaware of her disappointment, he asked brusquely "Well… Did she agree to the terms of the bargain?"

Then it hit her; Syaoran didn't know that she was not Cattleya but her sister. The accustomed way he look at her as if he has known her long enough. She was about to correct his mistake but decided to play along. "She hasn't the guts to say no under her circumstances."

"She doesn't trust me. You could tell her that I can be trusted." He said void of any expression.

She was puzzled by his statement but suddenly realized that _He must have known of her lover and not the possible consequence. _"She's not worried about her boyfriend but the chances of her of conceiving a baby in a few months." She sat herself on the chair adjacent to Syaoran as she saw her brother done it a few times.

He didn't seem to care but replied, "I feel badly about her. Her boyfriend left her a farewell gift. What a pity?"

If Sakura were to react to what he had just said, she would have scolded him of his cold treatment of an important matter. But knowing Cattleya, she shrugged her shoulders and asked, "Why aren't you upset?"

"Why would I be concern where the child comes as long as I can brag it to my grandfather and get control of my own life?"

She could see that he was telling the truth. But she still insisted, "Most men mind. What if the baby turns out to be a boy an can be an heir that doesn't have your bloodline?"

Syaoran waved his hand in air as if he wasn't bothered by the possibility and looked away towards the fire. "I wouldn't know that, wouldn't I? I don't care anyway. It's my decision."

She was angered by his words. How could her sister thought that this man was ideal for her situation. "Isn't that kind of cruel to say?"

"Cruel?" He was shocked by the sudden display of strong emotions of Cattleya. He thought that she would be laughing at his statement. "Of course, Cat. How could I survive this nasty world if I'm not cruel myself? Did you warn your sister that she should not expect love in return nor commitment?"

"I've told her already." She replied quickly in a monotone.

"Did she hope for her boyfriend to come back for her and propose marriage for her?" The idea terrified him. He doesn't want to marry a woman who is attached to another man.

"No." She answered firmly that he didn't doubt the truthfulness of her reply.

"Good." He observed the confused look of Cat's face that is usually decisive.

"What if she did? You did expect her to take lovers on this little arrangement of yours, why not the man who impregnated her?"

"The thought seems absurd. She loves another man but sought for a man to replace him and would be disappointed, does not make a good wife."

"I thought you don't want a good wife?"

"You're right." Putting his hands on his temples to gently massage them. "If I was to choose, I wouldn't want a wife at all. I thought I had found a perfect woman for me in you, Cat. Why did you change your mind?"

She didn't answer right away. She averted her emerald orbs and gazed on the fireplace and is uncomfortable of the question. "Maybe I just found my soul mate."

He was about to laugh at what she said but stop at the seriousness look on the face of his company. Syaoran raised his eyebrow in question. "Love? Cat, you don't believe in love."

"Maybe lust." She answered with annoyance, turning her shining emerald eyes on him. She sat neatly as a woman, as she supplied, "Do you think I would not lust on another man?"

A doubt popped into his mind. He gave her his most seductive grin that usually made most women melt to his will. "Am I not a enough for you?"

"Maybe, you don't satisfy me." She whispered almost inaudible.

"You're not satisfied in our nights together?" He stood; amused to see her cross her arms on her chest tightly, as if protecting herself from danger as he approached. "I am hurt by your words. Maybe I should remind you of what would you loose."

"How?" She stammered. Her eyes widened as she watched him come closer. He was so close that he could she how her throat worked as she swallowed dryly.

AN: What do you think? Please review…


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